In a significant development, Irina Dilkinska, the former compliance chief of OneCoin, a notorious cryptocurrency scheme that defrauded investors of $4 billion in 2015, has pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges in a Manhattan federal court. The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the guilty plea, with U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos accepting Dilkinska’s admission of guilt. The 42-year-old pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, each carrying a maximum potential sentence of five years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams remarked, “OneCoin’s so-called ‘Head of Legal and Compliance’ Irina Dilkinska accomplished the exact opposite goal of her position.” The DOJ revealed that despite her role as the head of compliance for OneCoin, Dilkinska played a pivotal role in laundering money for the fraudulent scheme. Notably, she facilitated the transfer of $110 million in fraudulently obtained proceeds to an entity in the Cayman Islands.
Dilkinska’s sentencing is scheduled for February 14, 2024, and she faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for her involvement in the OneCoin scheme. The Department of Justice initially charged her with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering on March 21.
OneCoin, founded in 2014 by “Cryptoqueen” Ruja Ignatova and Karl Sebastian Greenwood, was exposed as fraudulent in 2015. Greenwood has already been sentenced to 20 years in prison on fraud and money laundering charges, along with a $300 million restitution order. However, Ignatova remains at large since disappearing in October 2017, just 15 days after a federal warrant was issued for her arrest. Despite exposure, OneCoin managed to generate over $4.3 billion in revenue, recording profits of nearly $3 billion between Q4 2014 and Q4 2016.
